In the last few decades, the popularity of the Labradoodle breed has skyrocketed. There’s good chance you even know someone who has a Labradoodle. There’s a lot to know about this cute, energetic breed. Here are a few things that you may not have known about this breed.
1. Labradoodles haven’t been around for very long.
The first Labradoodle was officially bred in 1988 in Australia. They were first bred to be guide dogs for people who had allergies. Because Poodles were known for their low-shed coat, they were used for the cross. Labrador retrievers were also used because they made good guide dogs.
Over time, the breed was refined and Labradoodle breeding associations were started. A lot of research went into breeding the right qualities into the dogs. There are now lists of different standards that breeders must reach to create a “real” Labradoodle cross.
It may seem like Labradoodles have been in homes for a long time, but they just reached popularity quickly. They were first used in households as guide and comfort dogs for people with allergies. Once people saw how cute and loveable this dog was, they wanted one for themselves. Today, it isn’t hard to find someone who breeds Labradoodles.
2. They’re more than just a Labrador/Poodle cross.
As the name suggests, this breed was first created by crossing a Labrador and a Poodle. This resulted in a dog that had a similar friendly temperament to the Labrador with a coat that was closer to a Poodle’s. It was experimentally crossed to see if it could work as a hypoallergenic option. In the first litter, only one of the dogs proved to not cause an allergic reaction in the prospective owner.
From there, two Labradoodles were crossed to create next generation of Labradoodle. These pups had similar features to each other than the first generation did. With this new generation, the coat type improved and didn’t shed as much. Soon, Labradoodles were being crossed with Standard Poodles to refine the coat even more.
The Australian Labradoodle came out of this research slightly later. This was a new breed that infused other dogs with the Labradoodle to improve the coat. Cocker Spaniels were often added to the mix. This produced a dog that was even softer than the Standard Labradoodle.